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Aging effects on the stabilisation and reactivity of iron-based nanoparticles green synthesised using aqueous extracts of Eichhornia crassipes

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Abstract

Aging effects play a crucial role in determining applications of green-synthesised iron-based nanoparticles in wastewater treatment from laboratory scale to practical applications. In this study, iron-based nanoparticles (Ec-Fe-NPs) were synthesised using the extract of Eichhornia crassipes and ferric chloride. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that the fresh Ec-Fe-NPs were spherical and had a narrow particle size range (50 to 80 nm). X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) demonstrated that the Ec-Fe-NPs were mainly amorphous in nature and consisted of Fe0, FeO, Fe2O3 and Fe3O4. As they aged, the particle size of the liquid Ec-Fe-NPs gradually increased and then tended to stabilise. Ec-Fe-NPs that were aged for 28 days were only 19% less efficient than fresh material at removing Cr(VI). Extracts aged up to 28 days were also tested, and their antioxidant capacity was found to be 15.4% lower than that of the fresh extracts. Furthermore, the removal efficiency of Cr(VI) using iron-based nanoparticles synthesised with the aged extracts was 67.2%. Finally, the active components of the extracts, which were responsible for the reactivity and stability of the iron-based nanoparticles, were identified by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. Overall, green-synthesised iron-based nanoparticles show promise for Cr(VI) removal from wastewater in practical applications.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.41471259). It was also supported by the Guangdong Province Environment Remediation Industry Technology Innovation Alliance (Grant No. 2017B090907032).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Environment, South China Normal University, University Town, Guangzhou, 510006, China

    Yunqiang Yi, Yufen Wei & Zhanqiang Fang

  2. Guangdong Technology Research Center for Ecological Management and Remediation of Water System, Guangzhou, 510006, China

    Yunqiang Yi, Yufen Wei & Zhanqiang Fang

  3. Department of Science and Environmental Studies, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 00852, China

    Pokeung Eric Tsang

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  1. Yunqiang Yi
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  2. Yufen Wei
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  3. Pokeung Eric Tsang
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Correspondence to Zhanqiang Fang.

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Responsible editor: Bingcai Pan

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Yi, Y., Wei, Y., Tsang, P.E. et al. Aging effects on the stabilisation and reactivity of iron-based nanoparticles green synthesised using aqueous extracts of Eichhornia crassipes. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26, 28361–28371 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-06006-z

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